Both are concepts relatively new, though the difference is highly defined.  Both have points in common.

Both workers use TICs to do their tasks and work from their home with no need to be at the office every day.

The difference is that the telecommuter reports to his boss. The company provides all the necessary equipment such as PC, phone, manuals, connection to internet, first aid kit, desk and ergonomic chair and others, in order to perform the duties from home instead of the company premises. The employer, also, does the performance assessment as a regular employee.  The telecommuter is requested to work at the company once or twice a week to maintain his visibility, meet with his peers, gossiping, and to keep the integration with the rest of the team, and to make sure bosses know he is around.  Some companies provide an amount of money to the employee to pay the expenses incurred on the changes he needs to do at home. And from the company side, there is the concern whether the employee is really working on the tasks assigned.

On the other hand, the Virtual Assistant may work from home or her own office. All the costs such as connection to internet, softwares, PC, fax, phone and others are provided by herself.  The Virtual Assistant does not have bosses, but Clients.  She delivers a professional job, one that has been previously budgeted and accepted by the Client.  The Virtual Assistant is her own boss, works harder and with a high quality level to satisfy her clients. Besides, the VA has a double role: to perform the tasks assigned by her clients and to promote her business, increasing her portfolio of clients and retaining the existing ones.

Trust is very important for both workers.  The relationship between clients and VA is a relationship based on trust. 

The companies get some benefits from this form of working, since there are some savings on fringe benefits, physical space, equipments, etc.  The company (Client) just pays for the time contracted to do the job. Also, this way of working represents significant savings on money and time for companies who use to hire temporary help, since VA's are less expensive and with a lot of experience.

If you need further information, please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Brenda Medina-Hazan

www.assist-u-online.com.ar